Best Authentic Mole Sauce Recipes

MOLE SAUCE

Steps:

• Add chicken, garlic, onion, bay leaf, chicken bouillon, salt, oregano and water to pot. Bring to a low boil and cook over medium heat until chicken is just cooked through, about 30 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate, (reserving the broth) cover to keep it warm and set aside.
• Add the sesame seeds to a large dry skillet over medium heat and cook them, stirring constantly, until toasted. Be careful not to burn them. Set aside.
• Use scissors to cut a line down all the chilies to open them up flat. Remove veins and seeds.
• Add a few tablespoons of oil to the skillet over medium heat. In a separate large saucepan, add 2 cups of water and turn heat to medium-low.
• Once oil in the skillet is hot, add one layer of chilies at a time to the skillet, frying on both sides for just a few seconds, careful not to burn them, then transfer them to the saucepan of water.
• We will continue to fry most of the remaining ingredients, one at a time, so add a little oil between each batch, as needed, just to coat the bottom of the pan.
• Fry the peanuts stirring often so they toast but don't burn, about 45 seconds. Add to the pot. Repeat with almonds, then raisins, then animal crackers, then corn tortilla, and bread slices, adding each to the saucepan and pressing down as much as possible into the water.
• Turn skillet heat to medium-high and add more oil if needed to coat the bottom of the pan. Add onion and fry for 1-2 minutes. Add garlic and fry for just a few seconds before spooning the onion and garlic into the pot. Add sliced plantain to the hot oil and fry on both sides, then add to the pot.
• Reduce heat to medium and add peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, anise, and crushed red pepper to hot oil and fry for a few seconds, stirring constantly, then add to the pot.
• To the saucepan with all of the ingredients, stir in 1 teaspoon oregano, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 ½ teaspoons chicken bouillon.
• Add the chopped chocolate to a bowl and pour some of the chicken broth into it, to help it melt. Set aside.
• Add 2 tablespoons lard or oil to a large saucepan. Once melted, remove from heat and set aside.
• Working in batches, add everything from the pot with the chilies to a blender and add enough of the reserved chicken broth to allow the mixture to blend. During one of the batches, add ¼ cup of reserved toasted sesame seeds. Blend each batch for several minutes, until completely smooth, adding more chicken broth if needed.
• Pour sauce through a fine mesh strainer (discarding what's leftover in the strainer) into the pot with the melted lard.
• After everything has been blended and strained to the pot, add the melted chocolate and broth mixture (you can blend it too, if the chocolate has not completely melted), to the pot. Add 1 Tablespoon of brown sugar, to start, then add more to taste, as needed.
• Cook the mole sauce over medium-low heat for 30 minutes to 1 hour, stirring often. If the mixture is too thick, add more chicken broth (I usually end up using all of the remaining chicken broth). Taste and add salt or sugar, as needed.
• Place chicken on a plate and ladle a big spoonful of sauce on top, then garnish with sesame seeds. Serve with Mexican rice and warm corn tortillas on the side.

MOLE SAUCE, MY STYLE: MOLE SANCHEZ

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• Begin by placing all the dry chiles on sheet tray and toasting them in hot oven for 2 minutes until they start to let off an aroma, remove quickly and submerge them in bowl with hot water. Set aside.
• Preheat the broiler.
• Place the onions, tomatoes, tomatillos, and garlic on sheet tray and allow until roast and allow to char in a salamander or broiler and the vegetables have roasted for about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.
• In a medium saucepan combine the prunes, apricots, and raisins with the red wine and allow to cook for 10 minutes or until the fruit has absorbed all the wine and set aside.
• In hot pan, toast all the spices, turning quickly as not to burn them. As soon as you see them smoking, remove, grind in a spice grinder, and set aside.
• To start assembling the mole combine the chiles, roasted vegetables, red wine-soaked dry fruit and the spices in large heavy bottom pot. And add the chicken stock and simmer for about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile peel the plantains and slice into 1-inch thick slices. In a saute pan with 3 inches of oil, fry the plantains until golden and add to the pot as well as chocolate and tortillas cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and puree the sauce until smooth. Serve with chicken, beef, or lamb.

AUTHENTIC MOLE FROM VERACRUZ MEXICO

Steps:

• Place the water, chicken base or cubes and chicken in a stock pot. Bring the water to a boil, turn the heat down to a medium simmer, cover and cook the chicken for 1 hour or until fork tender and the meat shreds easily.
• While the chicken is cooking pour the oil into a large saute pan. Heat the oil on medium heat. Once the oil is hot enough add in all ingredients from the dried chiles to the garlic clove. Fry the ingredients for 1 minute or until fragrant making sure not to burn the chiles.
• Strain the ingredients and discard all of the oil except for 2 tablespoons Place the strained ingredients possibly working in two batches in the blender.
• When the chicken is done, remove the meat from the broth and add in 2 cups of broth into the blender and half of the fried tortilla. Blend on high for 5 minutes.
• Heat the 2 tbsp of reserved oil on medium heat in the large skillet you were using before and pour in the blended mole.
• Then pour the other batch of chile and spices into the blender with the other half of the tortilla and 2 cups of broth and blend on high for 5 minutes.
• Pour the other batch of mole in the saute pan and stir to combine. Place the piloncillo and chocolate in the mole and stir until melted. Taste to adjust for salt.
• Add in the chicken pieces spooning the sauce over the chicken. Cover and cook for an additional 10 minutes to marry the flavors. Serve with fresh warm corn tortillas and white rice.
• Enjoy!